Acquiring/building a fast and cheap home for bare land

I'm starting to look into buying a residential property and asked the mortgage advisor at my credit union about mortgaging bare land. One thing she mentioned is that a home must be built on the land within a year. The price of land alone is already stretching my budget a bit so I can't afford to just plop a manufactured home onto the site. I also don't think I have the expertise needed to be confident that I can build a home by myself within the year while also continuing to hold down a 9-5.

I think one thing I need to do is clarify with her what the definition of a "home" is. Home Depot sells some very inexpensive sheds that would make a good starter home. They are sans insulation, electricity, plumbing, internet but I could possibly make do with a Yeti solar panel/battery setup, humanure, Skylink and warm clothes/bedding. That is something I would be willing to do while I planned my next steps but I'm guessing the bank won't like this as a "home".

Does anyone have any ideas or advice? I am not in a huge rush to buy, thinking sometime in the next 1-5 years. So potentially I have time to build skills, network, etc. Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!

Meg, suppose the first question is where in the Gulf Islands you intend to settle?

If the property is under the jurisdiction of the Islands Trust, there will be quite specific requirements that are easy to find.

If not, the municipality with jurisdiction will have some minimum requirements, or at least recommended guidelines that your bank will likely accept.

I often see construction trailers or mobile homes on steel skids that could possibly meet a "home" requirement. Actually, I regularly see some that are free, though you pay for moving, and they would need to be gutted and used as a goat/wood/equipment shed rather than healthy human habitation. But that might be enough to satisfy The Man. And dry storage is gold.

Is your desired location slowly becoming "gentrified" by people with money? Often they want to get rid of the cabin/boathouse that's there rather than pay a contractor to demolish it. So again, free for the cost of moving.

Personally, I'm coming around (slowly) to the idea of converted sea cans with that tough spray insulation as useful structures. There is one at my parents' place, a patch of fertile dirt outside of town with nothing else, and after I live with it through the seasons I can see possibilities.

Meg said, "One thing she mentioned is that a home must be built on the land within a year.

What will the mortgage company do if you have not built a home within the year>

Meg said, "I'm guessing the bank won't like this as a "home".

I would ask them what they consider a "home" to be?

Anne Miller wrote:

Meg said, "One thing she mentioned is that a home must be built on the land within a year.

What will the mortgage company do if you have not built a home within the year>

I suspect the bank was giving a "heads up" that development would be required by the Islands Trust or municipality -- probably an anti-speculation measure. There's no way a bank could set a rule like that and enforce it in the courts.

I guess you could research it or ask the mortgage advisor to explain the different types of mortgages. Maybe a “construction loan” would help finance the cost of building.  I guess you might be able to buy an undeveloped property that’s zoned residential under some sort of “land/investment loan”, but likely with different financial loan terms than a “residential loan”.  It sounds like the home building is needed to qualify for the “residential loan”.  

I think that as long as the city/government will give you a certification of occupancy, then it is good enough for the bank. https://www.crd.bc.ca/service/building-permits-inspections/permit-requirements

Here is the PDF with some extra info including the contact info for each island/region: https://www.crd.bc.ca/docs/default-source/building-inspection-pdf/buildinginspectionguide_final.pdf?sfvrsn=f07e8dc9_4

If it is a owner builder house, usually the biggest thing is that you have a septic system.

In most areas I have lived there are abandoned houses that can be had for little to no cost if you can move them.   I can think of two houses that were moved to vacant land. Both houses were quite small. One was obtained for free and moved for the price of $500.00. The other, the person cut in half and moved. Both houses were close to the property they were moved to.

So NO ONE builds a home in one year from scratch unless they have 2 million to spend and are in a warm dry climate.  I would march into the zoning office and ask for an extension or an audience with the people who enforce whatever regulations are there.  I slept in my car for the first three months just so I could be there 24/7 and stop paying rent.  I got into a big To Do with the Town Clerk about it, but that's a different story.

I budgeted my time into full time building the first year.  In Vermont you can be your own General Contractor and Owner/Builder.  I can live on less than $1000 / month and put any other money into the build.  But the first year was crazy expensive.  OMG.   I'm in year two now and in one of the rainiest summers I've ever experienced in New England.  I've picked up odd jobs to supplement - most recently at a sawmill which is helping pay for milling my own trees and educating me to how it's done in real time.  If you can take a summer off from your job to work on your house every day you will have something by winter.  It doesn't have to be big or finished.  Just weather tight.  Think 10 x 10 cabin.  You can get through a winter in that and add on to it.  Like the pioneers did!   It's a common thing to start small and add on.  See How Buildings Learn by Stewart Brand.  "Cheap" is relative.  

I'm building small, in stages, modular, on site.  I started this method after my timberframer bailed on our house agreement and I told him just to put up a barn and be gone.  I was able to put up a 6 x 16 insulated room where the electricity and water meet.  I found that it was cheaper to buy a mini excavator and dig the trenches myself than hire someone.  When I'm done landscaping and laying in the septic and have no more rocks to move I can theoretically resell this great tool to recoup that investment.  Or start a mini excavation business!

Last June when the timber framer guy had his melt down I realized I wouldn't have a place to live in time for the cold weather.  So my solution was to buy a tiny house on wheels.  Fully insulated, the Tiny is lovely and stick built.  It would make a nice Air BnB, guesthouse, or rental.  Or, as it's on wheels, it could be sold too.  It doesn't hurt that I'm on the planning commission and the state of Vermont is mandating retooling zoning to allow for greater density and greater variety of housing.  Have you looked into yurts?

This year the rest of the foundation goes in and then I have to wait till April 2024 for Stage 2 (or 3?) for a more petite timberframe home to tie into the Utility room that is there.  I've extended my Building Permit.  

And - I'm avoiding banks like the plague.  It's cheaper to cook beans in a crockpot every night and do your own building full time than work a job so you can pay a bank their cut.  

So I ask you, Meg.  How much do you love your job?  If the answer is not that much, choose SHELTER over paycheck.  You won't be sorry and there's so many ways to barter.

Oh, and I have one of those Tuff Sheds from Home Depot.  It's fine for storage, but you can do better.  Really.

Without knowing all the details now, I would find out rather than guess.
Some points
1 Good debt with a bank may be better than living in a car!
2 Cynthias point about starting small has merit, start with a bathroom, lounge / bedroom and change room use until finished.
  Bathroom may be the only set in stone room.
3 If you go stick build, you could do panels at home, at night and move for assembly onsite.
4 If composting toilet and a grey water filter bed is permissible you would be well on the way.

I looked at this
https://www.coastalcontemporaryhomes.com/gulf-islands-projects
which details issues as listed here
"From transportation, weather, multiple-handling of materials, accessibility of hardware stores, trades and equipment
[.... all ]  increasing the complexity and escalation of costs when building on an island.
 It [... is...a ]  time-consuming endeavor and requires careful planning and project coordination absolutely critical!

Modular construction significantly cuts down on completion time is to assemble modular structures built elsewhere
and brought in by barge.
It reduces the timeline for the structure construction dramatically – to weeks instead of months.
However, the site must be suitable for erecting a crane to install the modules on your foundation."
..... and you need transport in place for everything in one movement if its large.


This may be the reality of your planning.

John C Daley wrote:Without knowing all the details now, I would find out rather than guess.
Some points
1 Good debt with a bank may be better than living in a car!
2 Cynthias point about starting small has merit, start with a bathroom, lounge / bedroom and change room use until finished.
  Bathroom may be the only set in stone room.
3 If you go stick build, you could do panels at home, at night and move for assembly onsite.
4 If composting toilet and a grey water filter bed is permissible you would be well on the way.

I should have specified.  I was car camping safely on my own land from April - June.  The car was a Honda Oddyssey that has tons of room when you take out the seats.

Get a porta potty first.  Ask about an incinerating toilet.  

Nobody does a septic system first because 1) it's very expensive to get a septic plan drawn up and approved and 2) once you put your standard leach field or stupid hump system in you can't drive over it.  Depending on the site that may stop everything.  The order I went in was Tree Clearing, Driveway building, well drilling, Electric installed, storage shed put up, deer proof raised bed garden, Tiny house, Barn, Utility room, Septic, Bathroom, Big Room, Greenhouse rooms.

The question I want to ask, is, do you want to Enjoy the process, Meg?  If so, the order that you do things is really important.  At least I think so.  

Over and out.

I like Cynthia's testimony.
In theory fast and cheap = low quality, but in reality the quality would be too low to pass any codes and way below any expectations of the owner. Fast and cheap can be only a used mobile home with low quality guaranteed.
I'm building very slowly, not compromising on quality with the best materials. If I wanted to speed it up the labor cost would quickly multiply by a factor of 10.

I often use suitable materials rather than the best, because often I can go further towards completion.
Suitable meaning they will do the job as well as anything else and last just as long as the best.

You could build a house pretty fast and kinda cheap with this system let me know what you think of it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJekgKmro_Y

What do you think of this floorplan, it's about 24ft by 40ft, give or take.

You could build that in sections;
- left hand bath and bedroom
- lounge x 1/2 initially
- right hand rooms on at a time

S Bengi wrote:... What do you think of this floorplan, it's about 24ft by 40ft, give or take.

I want to believe, but when I look at the scale it seems like a house built for lilliputians. Are these viable dimensions for actual humans?

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:

S Bengi wrote:... What do you think of this floorplan, it's about 24ft by 40ft, give or take.

I want to believe, but when I look at the scale it seems like a house built for lilliputians. Are these viable dimensions for actual humans?

25ft by 40ft is 1,000sqft. But yes I understand that for folks who are more into tinyhouse even 500sqft is too much and then there are others who think that anything less than 2,000sqft is too small.

Livingroom = 16ft by 12ft that seems big enough for me
Eat in Kitchen = 16ft by 12ft that seems big enough for me.
3x Bedrooms =  12ft by 12ft. That seems big enough to me
Bathroom = 6ft by 9ft. that seems big enough to me bathtubs are only 5ft long not 6ft, so it would really only be 5ft by 8ft
Laundry = 6ft by 9ft. that seems big enough for me
Hallway = 3ft by 12ft.
Grand Total = 24ft by 40ft aka ~ 1,000sqft
You don't have to have 3bedroom you can turn one of the bedroom into your empty meditation room/gym/art-studio/official dinning room/gameroom/greenhouse/etc

It's completely possible that my idea of big enough is messed up due to my love of camping in tents, living in a RV and living in a mid-rise in the city. And probably my dislike of having to do extra cleaning and mantaining, lol.

@John C Daley is correct you could build it in steps.

Fair comment! Thanks for the reply.

For me, those are viable but mighty tight spaces. But then I think about operating in this space for 6 months of harsh winter, and it would be claustrophobic. Cabin fever. Heeer's Johnny!

Personally I would go for a very open and flexible plan.

If this space assumed a covered outdoor space of equal or double size, it would offer a breathing hole in the ice -- temporary shop space, outdoor wood stove, all the things that expand the living zone. My 2c.

And my two cents worth:
I like the 24 x 40, but I would go for a big open flexible floor plan rather than cutting the space into small rooms.

I would try to have some basement underneath and a loft with enough headspace for sleeping.

In fact, here’s a thought, depending on slope, drainage and soil type , dig a hole 5 feet (1.5m) deep, line it & structurally fortify it as appropriate.  

Build the walls 3 feet higher (1 m) where you can have some windows, put a (semi temporary) roof on it and you have rudimentary shelter.  

In coming seasons, take the roof off and build your second story with sleeping lofts.

island...
basement?

not sure about that.  but dirt berms and platform, maybe?  you still have to build foundation walls and floor/roof.  then, for long term, you would need to think waterproofing.

i agree that you need to find out bank's defintion of house.  whenever, ive talked to banks about mortgages, their slant is what could they re-sell for that money they loan you.  many won't consider trailers or manufactured structures.

and when they say build within a year, i do think they are saying "start" within a year.

there are other loans for raw land that don't include construction.  and... well.. why not permies way?  "go fund me" your dream idea to construct it.

Cynthia Shelton wrote:
Oh, and I have one of those Tuff Sheds from Home Depot.  It's fine for storage, but you can do better.  Really.

Likely those Tuff Sheds won't meet code and will be difficult to finish because the framing isn't geared to being a house.  We're in the process of a shed to house conversion but had the shell built by a local Amish shed company that allowed us to customize construction to meet code.  Also had them frame the window openings but installed the windows ourselves so we'd have good quality residential windows, not the crap they use for sheds.  I can't overemphasize how much additional work is involved in site prep, proper foundation, plumbing, electric, insulation, and all the finishing work.  Even a shed to house conversion will undoubtedly take more than a year unless you have no other demands on your time and the weather works out just right unless you've got a tribe of great and handy friends.

This is a great thread.  Everyone has a piece of the puzzle.  No two situations or solutions alike.

Re: basements and lofts

Age in place
Single level living
Worth thinking about
When you're young you don't consider worn out knees & hips, and falling off ladders.

Stairs, clutter and too much maintenance were the primary house hardships for my elder clients when I worked as a case manager.
In VT we are experiencing flooding more and more and so basements are becoming a liability.  Plus many homes are sitting on ledge.

Recent mandates to "densify" and greater acceptance of ADUs has increased the ability to have a live-nearby helper when the day comes.
I'm a curmudgeonly loner and have a hard time imagining the day I would "need" a protective presence but am practical.  So...

Plan A:
I'm living now in my future ADU.  It will be an income-producer when I move into my larger home as a guest house, rental, AirBnB.  Thus acclimating me gradually to having other people around.  It's really hard to suddenly have a stranger in your space when you are 80.  Better to work up to it.  
Then, when the day comes, it can be a Home Share situation where a person pays a minimal rent and trade the rest as helper.

In the larger home I'm building the open concept (as several people have already mentioned here) because I know my needs will change over time and I want the space to be flexible.  No interior fixed permanently - divider walls using screws so it can be altered.  Beds do not get their own room, but are berths tucked into the walls and hidden.  

Really high ceilings  and lots of light make  the smaller footprint tolerable.  And they allow for a free standing loft area for storage if desirable.  My "big" room will have a 21' high roof line.  

Re:  Building permits. In our town the building permit is for 2 years during which time you have to start something.  I'm in year 2 and already know I'm not going to be done, so opted for the 2 year extension in advance.  They can see I'm making progress so no one is hassling me.  Good to develop a working relationship with the zoning and listers departments, however they exist where you are. Also recognize that there are probably politics involved, so stay sensitive to that.

What about going to zoning and ask about buying the land to make it a small destination campsite?  In this way you could potentially live in the structure that is the office.  It would be a higher interest business loan but maybe could produce a side income too.

Many TV shows feature "creative homes" out of old train cars, airplanes, silos, old roadside attractions, etc.  If I had to put up a "house" quick I would find a free yacht (plenty out there for the taking once the engines go) and ask what foundation would be needed to it covert it into a house.  

The physical house is not the expensive part though, it's everything else, starting with the engineered building plans.  Our plans / engineering cost us 5K (20 years ago) even though all the materials (straw bales) for all our exterior walls of our 1200 SF home cost us only $1200!  

The beauty of building something "odd" was that the bank was without a clue on how to create the payment / draw schedule.  After struggling to understand what a "hay house" was, the bank finally just told me to draw the document up myself and they would approve it, ha!  This actually was key to us getting the house built as I was able to overestimate the front end costs ..

.  

The point of a bank wanting a "home" on the land is not that someone should be able to live there--it's resale.
If they are going to write a mortgage on it, they have to have something to repossess  in case you default.  A home has a clearer market value and makes a quicker sale, so they generally require either a salable home or a much higher down payment and stricter payment schedule.

In addition, banks generally require you to insure the home or to have construction insurance if you are building. There are often deadlines for specific phases of construction, with financial penalties if they are missed. What can they do to you if you miss the deadline or don't adhere to their requirements? Well, if you don't meet the terms of a contract,  they can (and often do) demand full payment. My neighbors lost their land that way just 2 years ago--repossessed and sold at auction because they couldn't meet the terms of the contract after being injured in a car wreck.  All in all, getting a loan for raw land requires pretty deep pockets unless you're in an area that's very depressed economically and will make allowances.

It would be worth finding out if anyone locally has successfully done it in stages, with a travel trailer for example (which is what we live in on our country property.) Usually a trailer or RV is more acceptable to regulators and bankers than a non-code dwelling, because it's easy to remove and can be sold separately.

Long-time local realtors and insurance agents often have an encyclopedic knowledge of the local land and the players involved. They will have seen many many buyers, parcels of land, and scenarios. It can be worth visiting with them

We bought a sweet tiny home on wheels from “Cool Beene’s Tiny Homes”, a lovely couple who build them in SW Oregon. Ours is solidly built and was very reasonably priced, and they were awesome about helping it get to our property 2hrs away. Our friend who lived in it this Spring/Summer said it was very comfortable and cozy in hot, wet or cold weather due to the thorough insulation and solid build (also withstood 6ft of snow). This awesome couple also use their skills to help house youth in foster care. Check them out!

https://www.instagram.com/cool_beenes_tiny_houses_/?hl=en

All other expenses aside, if you are looking for inexpensive but quality + fast to construct dwelling I would say a steel Quonset Hut + spray foam insulation.  
We were considering this for our home but how to cover the spray foam insulation part made us switch directions.  Ask your building dept what the minimum size house that's allowed.  With a Quonset hut, you can go tall and add needed square footage with a loft area. Good luck!  

Lynne Cim wrote:All other expenses aside, if you are looking for inexpensive but quality + fast to construct dwelling I would say a steel Quonset Hut + spray foam insulation.  

Price out the spray foam insulation before falling in love with that idea.  We felt it was worth it but the price in the autumn of 2021 to have our 24' x 24' shed/house insulated was $8K.   And yes we price shopped.

Dianne Justeen wrote:

Lynne Cim wrote:All other expenses aside, if you are looking for inexpensive but quality + fast to construct dwelling I would say a steel Quonset Hut + spray foam insulation.  

Price out the spray foam insulation before falling in love with that idea.  We felt it was worth it but the price in the autumn of 2021 to have our 24' x 24' shed/house insulated was $8K.   And yes we price shopped.

Yes, if you have someone do it for you it sure is expensive but probably worth it in energy saved in the long run.  If the house is shed size they could do the DIY kit for significantly less (but yes still a big ticket item), the thought is with a Quonset hut the structure is also the roofing and exterior cladding as well as the framing so money saved by not having to purchase those materials.  Breathability would need to be considered, small bathroom size HRV maybe.

Something like this might be the quickest and cheapest design. To get the bank off your back, then you could build your actual dream house and set this one up as a rental/airbnb/nature retreat or something.

Polycarbonate "glass panels"  is about $250 for a 6ft wide by 10ft tall. https://www.acmeplastics.com/cut-to-size-clear-polycarbonate-sheet
So about $7,000 for the glass walls.
Then the 4 doors would be another $2,000
Slab foundation with radiant in-floor heating = ??? regular price
Roof = ??? regular price
20 post and 4 bond beam to hold up the roof = ???
Bathroom+Mech = ???
For privacy some simple curtains couls be use or screens-dividers/etc

Most of these designs are doable and have their place in different situations, but I'm not seeing much to help someone with no money to spend beyond the cost of the land.

Your cheapest, fastest, and least limiting option is to go on Facebook marketplace or similar and find a used travel trailer. Or pitch a tent if the weather permits. Then you can be on your land, (getting free of rent elsewhere) and start learning about the patterns of water, sun, growth, access, etc on the land. The only truly irreparable mistakes we made here on our property were the decisions we made before we were in residence. Now we have to work around them.

I am staggered to think that the house plans here, which are all far far beyond my means,  are considered temporary and economical solutions.  Depends on where you sit. I'm sitting in a travel trailer rescued from the dump, but I'm on my own land and don't have a mortgage.

I think the trick to doing this cheap is to:
build a slab foundation with infloor radiant heating
use post and beam to holdup the roof
build a simple shed/flat roof
build the external wall, then followup with only building the internal walls for the bathroom. So it's almost like a huge 1000-3000sqft studio.

Then the "non-load bearing" exterior wall can be glass/strawbale/cob/ foam-covered in stucco/etc. And you can always modify the internal walls later when you want.

The internal bathroom wall can hold the drain/mechanicals/electrical for the kitchen sink and the laundry-mech room, depending on the layout.

Good job on your choices, and being satisfied with them, Jamie.  

This is the divide between mortgage -  no mortgage.  Bankers protect their money!  Enter codes and insurance, which, gosh, funny thing, promote more business and more profit for banks.

We’re brainstorming here on how to minimize costs once a person has decided to go just the least way possible down bankers road.

The destination may be well worth it in having a more conventional home in the not too distant future.

I like the “plexiglass” house.